


The Ineffable Sonnets

by THE_Backwards



Category: Good Omens (TV), Good Omens - Neil Gaiman & Terry Pratchett
Genre: Aziraphale Loves Crowley (Good Omens), Best Friends, Crowley Loves Aziraphale (Good Omens), Enemies to Friends, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, Enemies to Lovers, Friends to Lovers, Friendship/Love, Grief/Mourning, Idiots in Love, Ineffable Husbands (Good Omens), Mutual Pining, Poetry, Religious Imagery & Symbolism, Shakespearean Sonnets, Slow Burn
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-25
Updated: 2019-08-22
Packaged: 2020-05-19 14:45:03
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 19
Words: 2,129
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19359124
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/THE_Backwards/pseuds/THE_Backwards
Summary: An ever-growing collection of sonnets inspired by Good Omens, written from the perspectives of Crowley and Aziraphale.This is now marked complete, but I will most likely be continuing to write them.





	1. Crowley I

**Author's Note:**

> You can also find these sonnets on tumblr! My blog is fundamentally-people over there.

O, angel that met me at the East gate  
And did not smite the snake nor give a shove  
But stood with and spoke of morals and fate  
Who killed me not then, but slowly with love.  
It’s truly amazing I’ve not yet died.  
You are slow radiation and still worse,  
You are corrupting my heart from inside.  
Love is your poison and you are my curse.  
I once was an angel too, I recall.  
That was long ago now, but I made stars.  
I always questioned so I had to Fall,  
But there are no sides now, there’s only ours.  
Falling from grace hurt less than loving you  
But fallen or not, love’s what angels do.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was my first sonnet ever and a joy to write!
> 
> Tumblr: fundamentally-people


	2. Crowley II

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Crowley finds the bookshop on fire and loses hope along with his best friend.

The bookshop is up in a blaze, my dear.  
These pages, your passion, in flames consumed,  
I searched through the fire, but you’re gone, I fear.  
Now alone I must face the world that’s doomed.  
What once was your home has become your pyre.  
You are nowhere on Earth that I can feel.  
You that I love, that controls my desire,  
To lose you is a nightmare, so surreal.  
Hellfire can’t kill me, but it could kill you.  
If it was not fiendish, I could not tell.  
I know what we had was more than taboo,  
But kill you? Heaven’s stooped lower than Hell.  
There’s no point fighting without my best friend  
So I’ll just sit and wait for it to end.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Again, you can find this on tumblr over at fundamentally-people


	3. Aziraphale I

You’re the serpent sent from the depths of Hell,  
Meant to be my adversary, and yet  
You still saved me from that cold Bastille cell.  
Our history’s a forbidden duet.  
Faith is lost and found in your arms, my dear.  
I’m drowning in the possibilities.  
The what ifs swim; my thoughts become unclear.  
We’d love if not for their hostilities.  
Your constant is the only one I know,  
Gentle compared to Heaven’s sharp scolding.  
Your tarnish is more home than Heaven’s glow,  
Your halo still something worth beholding.  
So though I know I should pray and repent,  
Loving you is the most blissful descent.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hoo boy, this one was a challenge to write! The way I write for these characters is different, though the form I use is the same. For Crowley, I write the first quatrain, then the ending couplet, and then fill in the other two quatrains. With Crowley's, I know the conclusion, I just need to figure out how to get there. Aziraphale is less simple. He writes linearly, processing emotions as he goes. I understand that and frequently do it myself, but it's a great deal harder when in the form of a sonnet. This poem took me nearly five hours to write to my satisfaction, but I don't regret a second of that time. I would say this is my best work so far.
> 
> Tumblr: fundamentally-people


	4. Crowley III

You’re more than just an angel, dear lover,  
Heaven-sent, though I don’t care for Heaven.  
Outcast in Hell, now I rediscover  
A faith I’ve had ever since day seven.  
You deserve more worship than any God,  
A devotion pure and unwavering.  
You smile at me and I find myself awed.  
I fight to keep my voice from quavering.  
I was not made to endure divine love  
Yet there are no other words for this bliss.  
I’ve no faith for any power above  
But you’re my temple, my prayers are each kiss.  
Angel, I worship only at your shrine  
And hope that someday you will pray at mine.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Tumblr: fundamentally-people
> 
> All the kudos and comments are very much appreciated. Thank you all for being so supportive!


	5. Aziraphale II

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Aziraphale's love poem for humanity

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm keeping these untitled, but it this had a title it would be To The World.

They say that Heaven is a place on Earth,  
As though Heaven might be better than this.  
Heaven is empty of life, love, and birth.  
Starting at Eden, Earth has been pure bliss.  
The fight’s been hard, full of so many harms.  
You’re capable of so much destruction,  
Yet you draw me in with all of your charms;  
I fall in love at mankind’s seduction.  
Earth’s more Heaven than Heaven ever was;  
Those that don’t understand may think it strange.  
You learn and grow, which Heaven never does.  
There’s beauty in the way that you can change.  
Wondrous people, lovely, curious things,  
You give me hope for what tomorrow brings.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This one was especially wonderful to write. It's a love poem to Earth and humanity but it's not just Aziraphale's, it's mine. The human capacity to learn and grow and put so much hope and joy into the world is astounding. Sometimes I find myself bogged down by all the horrible things I hear about people doing to each other, but I always find the way back to this view. People are not inherently good or bad creatures, we're complicated. We have so much potential and we can change so much and I think that's beautiful.
> 
> Tumblr: fundamentally-people


	6. Aziraphale III

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Aziraphale realizes he's in love with his friend.

Six thousand years I’ve spent with you, dear friend.  
We’ve had our fights and drifted near and far,  
But still we’re with each other in the end,  
Just you and me, together as we are.  
We never should have gotten entangled  
For our camaraderie could get us killed,  
And yet now by my feelings I’m strangled.  
My thoughts have changed, with you my heart has filled.  
I think perhaps I am falling in love  
Though I cannot bear to lose you, my dear.  
Affection is something you are scared of  
And I would never wish to bring you fear.  
I’ll keep these feelings held close to my chest  
For surely you would flee if I confessed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> My fastest sonnet so far and still one of my favorites. As always, comments and kudos are greatly appreciated!
> 
> Tumblr: fundamentally-people


	7. Crowley IV

Your angelic influence corrupts me,  
My cursing less common than my blessing.  
No longer is evil my cup of tea.  
My demonic nature I’m repressing.  
Your friendship is a plague I can’t escape;  
We fight and part but can’t stand no contact.  
In each other’s compliment, we reshape.  
We’re opposites, but opposites attract.  
I am a demon, we both know this well;  
I should not exhibit any virtue  
And yet I do, despite the rules of Hell.  
All this and more I do because of you.  
We’ve burrowed each into the other’s soul.  
We’re too entwined to leave with hearts still whole.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Comments and kudos always brighten my day! Thank you all for reading so far, you lovely people are what keep me motivated to do this!
> 
> Tumblr: fundamentally-people


	8. Aziraphale IV

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A little post-canon Aziraphale sonnet for all you lovely people!

Your kisses sprinkle starlight on my face;  
Some part of what you made still lives in you.  
Your lips across my cheeks do softly trace.  
I fell for you so slow I hardly knew.  
Our influences changed each other’s fates;  
Inherent natures both have been denied.  
We’ve both adapted to the other’s traits.  
Now, here on Earth, we no longer must hide.  
Our lives have been entangled from the start;  
Through all our days, you’ve been my constant friend.  
It feels we share one soul, one hope, one heart.  
You stand beside me still after The End.  
Though we know not what tomorrow may bring,  
I’ll stay with you, hand in hand, wing in wing.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I figured it was about time I wrote something actually sweet instead of bittersweet. This sonnet is dedicated to my wife.
> 
> Tumblr: fundamentally-people


	9. Crowley V

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Crowley questions faith and his nature.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a dark one, folks. Read at your own risk.

You know, I never really meant to Fall.  
Demonic activity suits me not.  
I sauntered vaguely downward, now I crawl  
Toward each scrap of Heaven, else I rot.  
My heart of hearts is not supposed to feel;  
The flames of Hell should have destroyed my soul,  
And yet still now before the Lord I kneel.  
I cling to any semblance of control.  
Would that my tortured heart tore from my chest.  
Would that I could live without this damned hope.  
My empathy, a parasite, a pest,  
It curls around my neck like hangman’s rope.  
My wings clipped by that I cannot let go,  
I know not what to believe that I know.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Tumblr: fundamentally-people


	10. Crowley VI

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This is based on the theory of Crowley being Mary Magdalene.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A warning: I know very little about Christianity. What I know, I have learned from my wife and my Christian friends. I myself am Jewish, born and raised.

Churches are consecrated ground, it’s true,  
But I avoid for more reason than this:  
Depictions of the man that I once knew  
Immortalized in death and pain, no bliss.  
I loved him once, the son of God, though strange.  
I should not love, much less should I love him  
And yet he brought hope that the world might change,  
That even my future was not so grim.  
Not just in churches, my love’s corpse, it hangs,  
A light of hope for those that do believe.  
The sight pierces my heart with sorrow’s fangs  
And never lets me move on; still I grieve.  
Everywhere shows that cross that was his grave;  
There’s no escaping he I could not save.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Tumblr: fundamentally-people


	11. Crowley VII

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Crowley questions God, on humanity's behalf and his own.

These lovely, clever human people wait  
For word from you, for any instruction.  
You’re testing them, this I can estimate;  
Still, you shouldn’t test them to destruction.  
They’ll grow and change; they’re humans, after all.  
They will not be pure evil or pure good.  
Do you not love all creatures, great and small?  
They question you, as I do, and they should.  
You never give your children an answer  
Yet still expect them all to know the way.  
Your love inside them festers, a cancer,  
Leaving holes and eating their faith away.  
Your “love” for humanity’s more like wrath.  
I hope for their sake, they choose their own path.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I had a lot of fun writing this one. It came very much from my heart (I've been questioning a lot myself actually) and this was super therapuetic to write.
> 
> Tumblr: fundamentally-people


	12. Crowley VIII

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Crowley doesn't remember much from before The Fall. He wonders if Aziraphale does. He wonders if they knew each other.

The way he looks at me is so tender,  
As if he knows I hung the stars above.  
Though true, still I feel like a pretender,  
No longer worthy of his divine love.  
He looks at me as though he knows my soul;  
Though I was said to lose it in Hell’s flame,  
In his gaze, I feel it may still be whole.  
I wonder, does this angel know my name?  
Could he know all that I once was, Before,  
How Heaven’s light embraced me ‘til The Fall?  
I remember stars and questions, no more,  
But his eyes stir something I can’t recall.  
Did he know me before the apple tree?  
If he did, why did he keep this from me?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As always, comments and kudos light up my day! Thank you all for the continued support in this endeavor of mine.
> 
> Tumblr: fundamentally-people


	13. In The Beginning

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Crowley's blessing and his curse

God created the heavens and the earth  
And angels to assist with creation.  
They were tasked with the universe’s birth,  
But soon many Fell, doomed to damnation.  
The Lord cursed one to keep his soul and heart  
That it might cry bearing witness to pain.  
His empathy would set that one apart,  
Forever bound to Heaven by that chain.  
His heart would break; he’d wish he could not feel.  
The path the Lord had set him would be grim.  
He’d keep emotions close and never heal  
And for this, the Almighty pitied him.  
Though it was true he had done nothing wrong,  
Still he was cast out to make mankind strong.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I tried something a little different this time around. First of all, this one actually has a title. Secondly, it's third person. It was a fun challenge! I actually had most of it written, decided I didn't like it, and pretty much started over. Comments are always appreciated. Do you guys like this new point of view thing? Thank you all for you continued support, it means the world to me.
> 
> Good Omens tumblr: fundamentally-people  
> Other poetry tumblr: playing-poet


	14. Crowley IX

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Crowley has nightmares about his Fall and fears for Aziraphale.

I still have nightmares of my fall from grace;  
I close my eyes and feel my wings burning.  
I wake to see your sweet angelic face  
But all it does is fill me with yearning.  
We both know I was once an angel too.  
The life I once had haunts me every night.  
In day, I must still face it all in you.  
My halo pales next to your divine light.  
I am corrupted, tarnished, and destroyed.  
Through you, I’ll still do good from time to time.  
You question now, and I grow paranoid  
That you might Fall and join me in the grime.  
My angel, they would ruin you down here.  
I couldn’t bear to see that happen, dear.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you all for sticking with me on this. Your comments and kudos mean the world to me.
> 
> Good Omens: fundamentally-people  
> Poetry: playing-poet


	15. Crowley X

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Crowley must make an example of the first plant to fail.

I’ll tolerate no less than perfection.  
I told you this, so why did you cross me?  
There is no time for any reflection,  
I must dispose of you, my little tree.  
You were a favorite of mine, bright and green,  
But you faltered, now I must follow through.  
Your transgression cannot now be unseen.  
I must make an example out of you.  
You disappointed me, that cannot slide.  
Consequences must be distributed.  
You were my Eden, but now you have died.  
To you my faults I have attributed.  
To kill you hurts me to my very core,  
But sometimes we must kill what we adore.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I blame The Ritz discord for this one (looking at you, Brinn) based on some headcanons they were doing.  
> Thank you all so much for your continued support!
> 
> Good Omens tumblr: fundamentally-people  
> Poetry tumblr: playing-poet  
> New poetry website: https://playing-poet.weebly.com/


	16. Aziraphale V

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Aziraphale thinks on what could have been.

They would have condemned you to destruction,  
Melted you to sludge with holy water.  
I was to lose you at the abduction,  
Helpless as they led you to the slaughter.  
Never have I been quite so overjoyed  
To know what was to come before it came,  
For if not, we would both have been destroyed  
You in Heaven’s water, I in Hell’s flame.  
I cannot stand the possibility  
That I was meant to lose you forever.  
I am glad for our changeability  
Else they’d had success in their endeavor.  
Thank goodness for that prophesied disguise;  
Your loss would be worse than my own demise.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Two updates in one day? Yes! Thank you all for sticking with me on this. Your kudos and comments inspire me to keep writing.
> 
> Good Omens tumblr: fundamentally-people  
> Poetry tumblr: playing-poet  
> New poetry website: https://playing-poet.weebly.com/


	17. Aziraphale VI

There is one myth that is not quite fiction,  
That of Atlas and his condemnation.  
You carry the world, your own infliction,  
This punishment of your own creation.  
The burden you choose to bear, such great weights,  
Press down heavy on your shaking shoulders.  
All that you cannot let go now translates  
To these, your metaphorical boulders.  
The weight of your past failures drags you down.  
You keep your feelings close, never exposed,  
But if you just let go, you will not drown.  
Your suffering is none but self-imposed.  
This self-set suffering is all your own,  
But you need not bear this burden alone.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the wait, folks! I've been focussed on my other poetry lately, but I am still doing these!
> 
> Good Omens tumblr: fundamentally-people  
> Poetry tumblr (two poems every day!): playing-poet  
> Poetry website (all my poems in one place, posted the same day that they're written!): https://playing-poet.weebly.com


	18. Crowley XI

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Just a love poem, plain and simple.

My lover’s scent is that of books and dust  
And something underlying all his own.  
Only to him would I my heart entrust  
For only he would not leave me alone.  
My darling keeps me safe and holds me close,  
And I could burn beneath his radiant grin.  
Sometimes I fear that I might overdose  
On his pure love, on my angel’s sweet sin.  
Sometimes in his affection I could drown,  
So overwhelmed by my love’s holy grace.  
I find my shelter here, wrapped in his down,  
True pleasure lies within his wings’ embrace.  
Though true I once among the stars did roam,  
Here in my angel’s arms I’ve found my home.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the absence lately. I promise I am still writing these, though I think I may mark this work completed. I will continue to add to this whenever the mood strikes. Thank you all for your support!
> 
>  
> 
> Good Omens tumblr: fundamentally-people  
> Poetry tumblr: playing-poet  
> Poetry website: playing-poet.weebly.com


	19. Aziraphale VII

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Aziraphale talking about his demon.

I hear your voice sometimes in crackling flame,  
The popping reminiscent of your kiss.  
We both know I could never hope to tame  
The serpent that still lives within your hiss.  
I’ve found that there are times you burn my tongue,  
The sting of Hell clings to you even now.  
I choke on you, like smoke caught in my lung.  
Still, I’m alive, though I do not know how.  
For you, my dear, I’d walk to my destruction  
And face it, unafraid of what’s to come.  
I mind not that you’re of Hell’s construction,  
It does not matter to me where you’re from.  
This love of ours can open countless doors.  
My demon, you are mine and I am yours.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Two updates in one night? Yes! I am marking this complete but it is by no means the end of this collection. Hope you all have enjoyed so far and continue to enjoy in future.
> 
>  
> 
> Good Omens tumblr: fundamentally-people  
> Poetry tumblr: playing-poet  
> Poetry website: playing-poet.weebly.com


End file.
